


I Swear This Time I Mean It

by Kkane88



Series: The Rookies [5]
Category: Men's Hockey RPF
Genre: Fluff, Getting Together, Holding Hands, Light Angst, Love Confessions, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-04
Updated: 2020-11-04
Packaged: 2021-03-09 04:19:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,634
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27378601
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kkane88/pseuds/Kkane88
Summary: Kirby sees all of Adam's off-season pictures with Rasmus and gets jealous. But just a little bit.
Relationships: Adam Boqvist/Kirby Dach
Series: The Rookies [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1887283
Comments: 3
Kudos: 40





	I Swear This Time I Mean It

**Author's Note:**

> All I'm saying is, there are 19 works in the Adam/Kirby tag, and 5 of them are by me. 7 are by my friends. Be the change you want to see in the world.  
> Also, this is not edited. Apologies in advance.

Kirby knows he’s being stupid when he tells Adam he can’t pick him up from the airport. It’s fine, Brinks volunteered to pick him up, and that makes more sense anyway since Adam’s _living with him_ , but the guilt gnaws at Kirby the whole morning. Adam had asked him and he’d said no. Why? Because he’s being stupid and jealous. It’s just that Adam’s been posting those pictures all summer of him and Rasmus hanging out poolside or training together or walking scenic streets and having a great time. Every picture left a longing ache in Kirby’s gut.

He and Adam talked, sure. At least once a week if not more. They did that zoom interview thing together and seeing Adam’s face lit up his whole day. When Kirby found out he was going to worlds, Adam was one of the first people who called to tell him congratulations. Kirby got back to Chicago two weeks before Adam’s flight to get some training time in with some of the guys, and once Adam found out Kirby was there he bought a plane ticket almost right away. The thought should make him feel better.

It doesn’t; not really. Facing Adam, facing the reality that they’re not as good of friends as Kirby wants them to be, makes him… sad. They’ve only known each other for, what, a year? He got so wrapped up in the excitement of going through their NHL debuts together and scoring their first goals and going to their first playoffs, that he forgot that they’re not _those_ kinds of friends. They don’t go on vacations together or hang out in the offseason or go on adventures.

It’s stupid. _He’s_ stupid. He should suck it up and go pick Adam up and enjoy their time together. But he said no. And now Brinks is picking him up and Kirby’s hanging out in Seabs’s spare room alone wishing he was with them. He knows they’ll probably be back home by now and it takes everything he has not to hop in his car.

“What’s up with you?” Seabs asks from the doorway. Kirby almost flails off the bed in surprise. “You’re moping.”

“I am not,” he grumbles.

“I thought you’d be thrilled.” Kirby doesn’t particularly like the grin on Seabs’s face. “Your boy’s coming back today, right?” Kirby doesn’t bother answering, his eyes landing on his phone lighting up on the bed next to him. He hears Seabs laughing as he walks away, but all of Kirby’s attention is on the phone. It’s a text from Adam- just a frowning emoji. He knows why, but he decides to play dumb and sends back a question mark.

_I wanna see you_ , Adam sends. Kirby’s heart rate skyrockets. He wants to say yes, of course, I’ll be there in 10 minutes, but he’d made up some excuse about an appointment to get out of picking Adam up and it would look suspicious if he were to show up right away.

_I’ll be there in like an hour_ , he says instead, already knowing it’s going to crawl by at a snail’s pace. Adam sends back a smiley face and all Kirby can think about is the zoom call, Adam running his hands through his hair with a grin and Kirby giggling like an idiot. He needs to get ahold of himself.

The hour really does crawl by. Kirby takes a shower and takes some time picking out clothes that don’t look totally stupid, and then wonders why he’s bothering. It’s not like this is a date, and Adam’s seen him way messier than this.

He only makes it about 45 minutes before he’s ordering an Uber and heading over to Brinks’s place. He only manages to knock on the door once before it’s flying open and he has an armful of blonde Swede.

“Took you long enough,” Adam grumbles into Kirby’s shoulder. Kirby tries to hide his smile but he sees Brinks laughing at them from the couch. Whatever. It’s not like Brinks and Stromer are any better.

“Sorry,” Kirby says quietly, regretting not being there when Adam got off the plane. Adam pulls back, looking up at him curiously. He knows he’s being strangely quiet, but he doesn’t really know what to say. “I was… you know. I had a thing. I wish I could’ve been there to pick you up.” Adam can tell something’s up so Kirby pulls away, leaning down to finally give some attention to Burt and Ralph who have been whining at their feet. “Hey, boys,” he grins, scratching behind their ears. “Bet you’re happy your bff’s back, huh?” He can feel the weight of Adam’s gaze on his face and pointedly keeps his eyes down until the dogs run off back to Alex. When he stands up again, Adam crowds close.

“Wanna watch a movie or something?” he asks carefully, obviously not sure what kind of mood Kirby’s in. Kirby feels like an idiot. His stupid insecurity about their friendship is making him act like an idiot, which is making him even more insecure about their friendship. Just play it cool.

“Yeah, for sure,” he agrees, trying to sound casual. He expects Adam to lead him to the couch next to Brinks, but instead he grabs Kirby by the hoodie sleeve and tugs him down the hallway to his bedroom. He doesn’t bother turning the light on, flopping down on the bed and patting the spot next to him invitingly. Kirby follows him, settling in as Adam picks up the remote and turns the tv on, flipping through Netflix. “You looked like you had a really great time with Rasmus,” he says before he can stop himself.

“I did,” Adam says absently. “I wanted to tell you about it but you hardly ever answered your phone.” He says it casually, but there’s an edge to his words that Kirby doesn’t like. Sure, Kirby dodged some phone calls and let some texts go unanswered, but he talked to Adam pretty regularly.

“I didn’t want to ruin your time,” he says. “I was just at home doing nothing and you were having fun.”

“I have fun talking to you,” Adam says quietly, and Kirby doesn’t think it’s his imagination that Adam shifts closer. “I would’ve called you every day if I thought you would have answered the phone.” That stings. Kirby feels the faint prickle of tears in his eyes, but wills them not to come to the surface. He’s not going to _cry_. “At first I thought maybe you didn’t want to talk to me.” He turns his head to look at Kirby. “Now I wonder if it’s something else.” Kirby can’t think of anything to say, just shakes his head and shifts his gaze to the tv. Adam sighs quietly, clicking on a random movie that looks like the normal shit they watch.

“I’m sorry,” Kirby says under his breath, but he knows Adam can hear him. “I was being stupid.” Adam doesn’t respond and the sounds of the opening fight scene fill the room. Kirby panics, wonders if he’s messed this up by being an idiot, a bad friend. And then Adam reaches over, finding Kirby’s hand in the dark and lacing their fingers together. Kirby’s kinda stunned; they’ve never done anything like this before.

“Adam-”

“You know I care about you a lot,” Adam says. Kirby nods, because he does know that. Adam turns to look at him. “I don’t know what… this is.” He seems to be struggling to find the right words, and Kirby wishes he could help, but it’s like his brain has forgotten how to work. “I want you to be happy. And I want you to be happy with _me_. I wanna talk to you every day and I want you to be a part of my life. A big part.”

“I… I want that too,” Kirby stutters out. It’s like his whole world has shifted off its axis, but Adam just nods once, like that’s what he expected, and turns back to the tv. Kirby’s so _confused_. “When you say you want me to be happy _with you_ -”

“I mean,” Adam cuts him off. “I’m kinda half in love with you.” He says it like it’s no big deal, but his hand is gripping Kirby’s like a vise. Kirby strokes his thumb across Adam’s skin, trying to soothe him even as he’s panicking himself. “And it’s okay if you don’t feel the same way, but-”

“I do,” Kirby says before Adam can even think otherwise. “That’s why I was being so weird. I wanted to be with you travelling and hanging out all summer and doing dumb shit. I just thought that since we spent so much time in the bubble together that maybe you would be sick of me or something.”

“Never,” Adam says firmly, like it’s indisputable truth. “Ask Rasmus. He got sick of me talking about you all the time. He was almost ready to call you and make you come join us.” Kirby grins, trying to hide his face.

“Well, at least we can be codependent together.” He shrugs, looking at Adam again once he has his face under control. They stare at each other for a minute, not saying a word, and Kirby wants to kiss him but he doesn’t. Not yet. Right now, it’s enough that Adam’s holding his hand and that they’re here, together. Kirby has to leave for world juniors soon, walking away from Adam again, but it’ll be easier knowing that Adam feels the same way, that this feeling isn’t just him.

“Hey,” he says when the thought pops into his mind. “Looks like we might be staying in Chicago for a little while. Maybe we should get an apartment together.”

Adam grins.


End file.
